Detention Dates
by missiemill
Summary: Cassie Silver doesn't like a lot of things and at the top of her list is George Weasley, or so she thinks. When the two are forced together under unfortunate circumstances, will George start to change her mind?
1. Weasel

**Hey, so this is my second story and my first Harry Potter one! I'm really sorry it's so short (which might be a good thing if you don't like my writing but hey!).  
**

**I don't own Harry Potter (sadly) but the story and original characters are mine.**

* * *

I close my eyes tightly, the noisy conversations of the girls in my train carriage irritating me non stop. Why I chose to sit with my cousin Ally I don't know, she's bad enough in small doses (Two years below me and nice but chatty and a little bit crazy). However, I had hoped Ally's friends would be not quite as bad. I feel sadly mistaken. Rummaging in my suitcase, I fish out a book on cars. I'm a half blood, a pure blood Mother and a muggle born Father. My Mum works in the Ministry and my Dad runs a company for spell and potion patents but my Aunt and Uncle on my dad's side own a garage. I help out there over the summer and I absolutely love it.

Anyway, the chatter means I've read the first sentence six times and so I give up. "I'll be a minute." I say quickly, scrambling to leave the carriage. Ally smiles and I get a "'Kay 'cuz'!" in reply. I slide open the door, feeling a little bit bad and sink onto the ground. It's oddly quiet out here, the little old witch with the trolley at least twenty minutes from stopping here. I settle down, book in hand and busy myself with learning about models (car, not fashion) of the 1960s.

I get very engrossed when I read, especially on things that interest me and I am only snapped out of it when a cold, slimy substance covers my face. I look up and unsurprisingly, George Weasley stares right back at me.

"WEASLEY!" I howl, wiping frogspawn from my eyes.

"Cassie!" his brother Fred interjects, trying hard to calm the situation. "You...um...excited about this year's OWLs?"

"Not now Fred, I need to kill your stupid brother!" I hiss, stepping towards the other boy. Instead of looking apologetic or worried, he appears amused.

"What can I say, you were the one lying across the corridor, I tripped." He smirks down at me, using his height to his advantage.

"Stop being an absolute idiotic loser, Weasel, and apologise." I spit, just the sight of him making my skin crawl.

"Weasel? Look, Silver, we get it. You're a 'total badass' and we shouldn't judge you for being blonde and attractive but _jeesh_! Do you have to have such a temper and be the feminist stereotype _all_ the time?" George questions. When I don't answer he smiles and walks off down the corridor.

"Do you two really have to address each other by last names _every _time you speak?" asks Fred jokingly, before following his brother down the corridor.

After casting a spell to clean up my face, I close my eyes, count to ten and head back to my carriage, putting on a fake smile as Ally questions why I took so long.

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**Thanks for reading and please review so I can improve! Sorry about the length, it will get longer as time goes on! So yes. First chapter done.**

**missiemill**

**xxx**


	2. Demented

**Guess who has too much time on her hands? Chapter 2! Also quick warning, I change between past and present so please bear with it, no matter how confusing it becomes... **

**Again, I don't own Harry Potter but own the story and original characters.**

**On with the story!**

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News of Harry Potter almost fainting on the train due to the presence of Dementors spreads through the school like wildfire, largely helped by his good friend Draco Malfoy who was happy to re-enact it for those who are interested. We also learn about our new defence against the dark arts teacher, the the third in three years. Professor Lupin is introduced at the feast but rumours of his showdown with a Dementor on the train have already circulated. Some people will tell you he cast a powerful spell to keep the creatures at bay but Neville Longbottom along with a few others will swear they heard he wrestled the thing to the ground with his bare hands.

My own experience with the Dementors is one I really wish to forget. Everything went cold and a pressure began building in my chest. And then, one of the many experiences of sadness I've had flashed before my eyes.

* * *

_A small blonde girl sits beneath a tree, a distance away from a busy playground, filled with children. She faces her back to them but she can hear what they are saying._

_"Cassandra, what a silly name! Who in their right mind would call a child that?"_

_"The family is creepy, they live down the road from me. There's all these bottles on shelves, I saw them through the window."_

_"My brother threw a brick through that same window once, shame it didn't hit her and kill her."  
_

_The girl blinks back tears, concentrating very hard on a small knot in the tree. She picks up a small leaf and walks over to the playground._

_"Why were you being so mean?" she asks the group of girls gathered in a circle._

_"How did you...?"_

_"How do you think? She's freaky, I bet she read our minds!"_

_"Let's run away so she can't do it again!"_

_The girls run away and the little blonde one stands alone. The leaf in her hands is engulfed in a small orange flame and turns to dust in her hands._

* * *

Being back at Hogwarts is something I've been dreading all summer. I like Hogwarts, I like my classes, the food, Quidditch and the castle itself. The other students, however, are a little bit more difficult. I don't really have many friends, just me and Jaz. We've been friends since first year, both outcasts, me, because of the stunning way I handle people and her because she sees things a little differently to other people. She's very artsy and a little bit kooky. She insists on wearing big earrings and patterned scarves 24/7 so people generally avoid her. For all her batty though, she's loyal and damn smart. She's a lot more chilled out than I am.

She's been visiting family in America though and is being driven into school tomorrow morning rather than coming on the train with the rest of us.

So, I sit at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, somehow ending up next to Percy Weasley and across from my favourite twins. Percy is an absolute prat and some idiot has decided to make him head boy. He has buffs his badge for the seventeenth time in twenty minutes and it .snaps my last nerve.  
Before I say anything George says, "Isn't it jolly good that our dear bother Percy is Head Boy?"

"Head Boy?" responds Fred. "I had no idea! Our dear bother hasn't mentioned it to us once!"

"Don't you mean brother?" piped up Ingrid Falstead, the nosiest and noisiest girl in my dorm.  
"Nope!" chorused the twins together. Percy looked affronted and muttered something about the twins not being Prefects and disgracing the family.

After the feast I didn't hang around in the common room long. Without Jaz I looked like a complete loner, something which George pointed out on the stairs up, so I went straight to bed. The dorm was quiet (Ingrid was playing Wizard's Chess in the common room) and so I drifted off quickly, my dreams plagued with Dementors.

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**So, chapter 2. Please give me a review and pm me any questions!**

**missiemill**

**xxx**


	3. Detained

**Chapter 3 done, sorry it is a little bit stereotypical!**

**I don't own Harry Potter or the characters except my originals. Read on!**

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Today is the first day of class and our lovely school though, You know what, let's throw the Gryffindors in double Transfiguration! And good old McGonagall put us in a seating plan. First time I've seen Jaz in months and the poor girl is sandwiched between the Weasley twins! I sit three desks back, completely alone. Apparently my buddy Ingrid was served a potion and is spending her time in the hospital wing, covered in boils. I feel a little bit bad for her but I'm kind of glad that Madam Pomfrey had to put up with her rather than me.

The lesson starts out boring, just McGonagall jabbering on about this years course an our upcoming. About halfway through the lesson, she tells us to get into pairs. Everyone in the class is sitting in even seats except me, the twins and Jaz. Jaz looks pointedly and me and I'm about to go over to her when McGonagall says, very loudly, "Weasley, I really must insist you and your brother do not pair up. I suggest one of you pairs up with Miss Clarke (Jaz) and the other with Miss Silver." She glances between us. She points at George and then at me. He strides confidently to the back of the room and flops into the seat next to me.

"I want you, in your pairs, to _discuss _(met with collective groans) how you would make a snail disappear. Next lesson you will be asked to perform this task, seeing as there is only ten minutes left this time. This will be part of your OWL and if you do not succeed on a snail I may have to fail you for the course and you would not be asked to sit this OWL." McGonagall then sits down behind her desk and waits for us to start. When we all remain silent she adds, "I expect an answer from each and every one of you or it will be a thousand word essay on the matter."

I turn to George, who is sitting low in his seat, his eyes barely open. Jaz turns and pulls a sympathetic face before turning to Fred to discuss. I tap George's arm and he sits up abruptly.  
"Is it over?" he mumbles stupidly, struggling to focus on me.  
"No idiot, we just started and this is important, so do wake up and get your tiny pea brain working to its fullest abilities."

He mumbles something. "Sorry, I didn't quite catch..."  
"VANISHING SPELL!" He cuts in loudly. The whole class turn to face us. I swear under my breath.  
"Mr Weasley, you are correct, however this was a question posed to the whole class. I expect the essay to be on my desk for tomorrow morning. You too, Miss Silver."  
"What? But that's so unfair! I didn't shout out the bloody answer!" I say, losing my temper.  
"Detention on the first day of class Miss Silver. I think it's a record, not even Mr Weasley or Mr Weasley have achieved that feat. My office, 7 o'clock sharp this evening."

George pipes up. "Isn't that a little bit unfair Professor? Look, give me detention instead of writing some essay and leave that to Silver?"

The Professor considers. "Perhaps a compromise Mr Weasley. You serve detention alongside Miss Silver _and _write me an essay for tomorrow."

George opens his mouth but knows better than to protest. "7 o'clock sharp Weasley, my office."

* * *

"So, Silver, getting detention so early on in the year...following in my footsteps?" George wanders along the corridor behind me, his brother next to him smirking. I just throw him a nasty look and storm away. "See you in detention!"

"S'cuse me, sorry, pardon me. Hey Cass, wait up!" I turn to see Jaz pushing through the crowd of people filing to their next class. She sees my face and grimaces. "That bad huh?"  
"Spending more time with the Weasel? Of course it's bad! How could it be worst?"  
"At least you don't have to write that essay for McGonagall..." Jaz smiles. "Now c'mon, let's go to Charms, you like Charms!"  
"No, _you_ like charms because you sit next to Adam." I say with a small smile. Jaz blushes.  
"Shush! Anyways, why do you hate George so much? He seemed really nice to me!"  
"Jaz, before I hurt you I think we should go to Charms right now!"

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**Thanks for reading and please review so I can improve! I hope you enjoyed!**

**missiemill**

**xxx**


	4. Deal

**This chapter might get a bit boring, I hope not but you can be the judge.**

**I don't own Harry Potter but I do own the original characters.**

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"Hey Silver." Silence.  
"Silver" More silence.  
"YO SILVER!"  
"WHAT?"  
"Pass me my folder?"  
"Why?"  
"Just pass the folder."

We sit in McGonagall's office, sifting through her paperwork, piles a upon piles of yellows parchment. It's 8:45. McGonagall left us to sort through her files while she went to see the Headmaster and has charmed the door to stay locked until 10:00 exactly. The candles have burned low but the roaring fire casts warm light across the gloom.

I look at him strangely but pass it anyway. He flips through it, pulling faces at certain points.  
"What, what does it say?" He looks up from his reading.  
"George Weasley is the most hilarious, devilishly handsome and brightest student in his year. No wonder all the girls are falling at his feet, especially one Miss Silver." He winks at me.  
"You know Weasel, I think you might actually just not know my first name and that's why you call by my surname all the time." I say quickly.  
He doesn't answer, merely puts down his folder and rummages through a pile. He picks out a file and hands it to me.  
"Your folder, your Highness."  
"Oh ha ha...no thanks."  
"No thanks? Don't you want to hear what McGonagall thinks about you?"  
"Nope."  
More silence.

* * *

_"Mr and Mrs Silver, your daughter is very sensitive, more than other eight year olds. The other pupils mock her and sheShe does not participate in class discussions and she does a minimal amount of work. I believe she will not progress as long as she isolates herself from others." The parents' evening had not been going well for the Silvers. Their daughter, they had been informed, was being bullied._

_The whole car journey home, neither spoke. When they returned home, Mr Silver went to see his daughter immediately._

_"Cassie, your teacher had something interesting to say."  
"Daddy?" Cassie blinked.  
"Some of your classmates been picking on you?"  
Cassie bit her lip and her eyes filled with tears.  
"No Cassie, don't cry. No matter what they say or do, don't let it get to you. You have to fight the tears, show no emotion. They can't hurt you if you don't let them."  
"But Daddy..."  
"Ssssh. This is for you own good, Princess. You can't let it hurt you. Don't let the feelings in, they'll never sting you."  
"Yes Daddy."_

* * *

"What time is it, Silver?"  
"Same time as it was last time you asked."  
"Which was?"  
"9:27."

I look through a few more folders. George starts doing this but eventually throws them down and sighs. He lies back, puts his hands behind his head and props his feet on a stack of files. He closes his eyes, looking very settled. I hesitate before I yell.

"Oi lazy! Don't mean to interrupt your well earned rest but we have work to do!"

He opens his annoyed rolling his eyes. "It's _way _past my bedtime! Scheming is hard work you know!"

"Oh please! Pulling a few pranks on some first years hardly qualifies as hard work."

"Oh, and scowling at anyone who gets in your way does? You wouldn't be able to pull off a prank anywhere near as difficult as what I do!"

"Is that a challenge, Weasel?"

"Maybe...look, if you can help us out with a prank that's a success, I'll promise to..."

"Leave me alone?" I cut in. He looks hurt but after a minute nods slowly.

"And if we fail, you have to promise...to be nice to _everyone__...for a whole week!" _

"Deal. This is too easy." I smirk at him, confident I'll succeed.

"You won't be saying that when I tell you what prank you'll be helping us with." He smiles evilly, a glint in his eye and I almost feel a tiny bit afraid."

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**Thank you for reading, please leave a review to help me improve! Hasta La Vista for now!**

**missiemill**

**xxx**


	5. Niffler

**Hey, so I know it's been a while but I've been on holiday recently. Hopefully I will be able to update more often**.

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

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When I meet with the twins I can tell this isn't going to be your typical 'bucket on the door' prank. The room is dark, a disused classroom of some sort but if I strain my eyes I can barely make out the shapes of a few crates, one of which seems to rattle a little.

"You can have a look in that crate, if you like?" I turn to see George watching me. He seems genuine but his eyes glitter in amusement. I hesitate before taking a few steps towards the crate.

"Don't open it, just slide back the hatch on the top." George says hurriedly.

I do as he says and see that a square of glass has been fashioned into a window. Behind the window is what startles me.

"Nifflers? What do you want with Nifflers?" I exclaim.

"Well, as you know, Nifflers are attracted to shiny things and will destroy whole buildings...so much chaos is certainly an interesting idea..."

"So why am I here?"

"We need help to turning Snape's office gold." George and I both turn in surprise to see Fred has arrived. "Not interrupting am I?"

"Nope. But...gold? Can't you do that yourselves?" It seems like a trivial task, a very simple charm. The Weasley twins were good at charms, one of the few classes they didn't deteste. So why ask me to do it?

"It's not the spell itself, it's the person who owns the office that's the problem. You get caught, you're toast." said Fred matter of factly.

"So I'm doing your dirty work?" I ask, appalled at my apparent lack of worth.

"What did you expect? We run the operations!" Fred seems surprised by my outburst.

"Do I at least get a look out?" I fight the anger bubbling in my stomach.

"I'll do it." says George quickly. "I'm releasing the Nifflers in the office anyway, might help if I'm there early."

"Okay, I'll send down the crate, it will be in the broom cupboard nearest his office. You sure you two will be okay?" Fred looks a little bit unsure.

"We'll do great!" I say confidently, more to convince myself than him.

"Yep." says George, but he looks a little bit less confident than usual.

* * *

"Silver?"

"Go away. I'm working."

"Silver."

"Leave me alone, I'm doing my homework."

"Come on, Cass, hear me out!"

"What?" I ask, slamming my book shut.

"About this bet...you don't have to do it you know. Just back out and let me win! It isn't that hard, being nice."

"Oh Weasel of little faith, I can do this and I can win. And then, you can leave my life forever."

He looks down but then gains the look of arrogance I'm so used to.

"Fine, meet me tomorrow morning, 4:30 am in the Gryffindor common room."

"It's true what they say, isn't it. Evil never sleeps." I hiss. He just ruffles my hair and walks away.

* * *

"Why so early?" I mumble, rubbing my eyes sleepily.

"You'll get used to it." George replies, stretching his arms out and yawning.

We stop in front of the door to Snape's office and all of a sudden my stomach flips. I hesitate, then I steel myself and take a step forward. I pull at my wand and try a simple spell to unlock the door.

"You do realise Snape has one of the most secure offices in the school. I doubt magic will help you through the door."

I reach forward and tug on the door handle. It turns easily.

"Just go and be look out. Leave this to the professionals." I smirk and make my way into the office.

I am greeted by shelves of books and pickled jars. The furniture is all dark and very bare. I am hit by the cold and the smell...the smell is awful, like everything is rotting. I shiver, wondering where the draft is coming from.

"Time to brighten up the place..." I mutter and cast the spell quickly. A ribbon of gold drifts from the end of my wand and slowly snakes its way around the room, turning everything it touches gold. The room almost seems warmer and I realise it is actually a nice room, despite the previous decor. I survey my work, then walk out of the office swiftly and meet George outside.

"You're it." I say and George smiles. He leads me to the broom cupboard and opens it up with his wand. He disappears inside to retrieve the crate. He drags it along the corridor towards the office, heading out of sight.

I feel a surge of excitement and giggle. Too easy. I hear the sound of chaos and smile, wondering why I seem to be getting used to it. George reappears and we start to head along the corridor when we hear a voice, very calm and oily but it makes the hairs on my arms stand up.

"Now, where do you think you're going, leaving the party so soon." I turn to see Professor Snape, eyes gleaming dangerously. He is holding something in his arms and once I see what it is I feel my stomach drop.

A niffler, chewing on a solid gold pen.

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**Thanks for reading, please review.**

**missiemill**

**xxx**


	6. Witch Girl

You are an idiot." I say harshly.

"You need to be _nice_, remember."

"You are an idiot." I say, mockingly brightly.

"How is this my fault, anyway? We both failed, remember?"

George and I are sitting in Snape's classroom, cleaning a few of his personal cauldrons. It appeared he had purposely concocted a very messy potion in **every single** cauldron.

I glance over at George out of the corner of my eye. His red hair and pale features appear to glow in the soft candlelight. His eyes flicker as he surveys his cauldron then sets it to the side.

"Okay, that one's done, pass me the next please Cass? " George turns to face me, reaching out his hands expectantly.

"Get it yourself." I tease, wiping a patch of slime off of my own cauldron.

He rolls his eyes but grins a little bit. I realise I am smiling too and abruptly force a scowl onto my face.

"There you go again, the minute you start to enjoy yourself you force yourself to stop. Why can't you just give in to your feelings?"

I realise he is very close to me now, reaching over to grab the next cauldron. I scoot backwards a little bit despite the fact I was enjoying the close proximity. I realise too late I have backed up a little bit too far.

Before I have time to move a jar of something green and slimy falls from the desk I have knocked and onto my head.

George doubles over in laughter, howling.

I blink a few times, then I do the only thing that feels logical to me.

I grab the closest jar of frogspawn and tip it on the loser's head.

* * *

"_Witch girl, witch girl, witch girl." called a small group of girls to the little blonde girl. She was a little bit away from them, hugging her knees._

_"Witch girl, witch girl, WITCH GIRL!" The girl's increased their volume, starting to circle the little girl. She was maybe five years old, wispy blonde hair and her skin very fair. She seemed to be trying to shrink into non-existence._

_"WITCH GIRL, WITCH GIRL, WITCH GIRL!" They were now surrounding her, snarling the words right at her. She starts to cry._

_"STOP! Stop right now!" calls a new voice, that of a young boy in her year. His hair was black and stuck out at strange angles and he had a spatter of freckles across each of his cheeks. "Leave her alone!" _

_The girls glanced at each other and then walked away._

_"Thank you." mumbled Cassie wiping her damp cheeks._

_"No problem." The boy smiled brightly before crouching beside her. "I'm Max."_

* * *

I sink down against the cold, slimy wall of the dungeon classroom and let out a giggle. Yep, a giggle, that again. I have giggled only four times in my life, including that andfeel thoroughly appalled. George sinks down next to me, frogspawn dripping down his head. What had started as a simple prank had turned into a full on slime war.

"I'm surprised, Silver, I didn't know you could just let go like that."

"Neither did I?" I admit, grinning broadly.

He turns his head to look at me, suddenly serious.

"I like this side of you, y'know, calmer?"

I smile. "I think I like this too. I feel like I could rule the world."

And that is when I make a fatal mistake. That is when I lean forward and press my slimy lips to his.

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**Thanks for reading! **

**missiemill**

**xxx**


	7. Bacon

**Boo! I'm back!**

**I don't own Harry Potter but own the story and original characters.**

* * *

For about ten seconds, I'm completely lost, allowing myself a freedom I've never experienced.

And then everything comes crashing back to me and I pull away awkwardly.

"Sorry..." I say quickly.

"You're alright." he replies, amusement and surprise clouding his features.

I stand up, suddenly cold all over. I walk over to my already spotless cauldron and clean away the invisible dirt. My head is spinning.

Why did I just do that? I'm not that kind of girl, the one that kisses someone I hardly know. I don't even kiss people I do know!

It crosses my mind that I actually really enjoyed the kiss.

"Silver..." I look at him. George opens his mouth and then closes it again. He runs a hand through his hair and then I see it dawning on him that his hair is still full of slime.

My cheeks burn with embarrassment and frustration with myself. I glance at the clock. This is going to be the longest 20 minutes of my life.

* * *

_"Who's this, sweetheart?" Mrs Silver turned to the small, scruffy boy her daughter had brought home for tea._

_"Max Cartwright, M'am. Nice to meet you." Max held out a small, skinny hand to shake._

_Mrs Silver blinked a few times before extending her own hand. "Nice to meet you, Max."_

_"Come on, Max, let's go upstairs." Cassie was secretly proud she finally had a friend to bring home. The two children raced up the stairs, laughing loudly._

_Mrs Silver smiled. She was absolutely thrilled her daughter had a friend, finally._

_If only she had known things would not be so happy for long._

* * *

As I lie in my bed, I consider the events of the detention. I'd had fun, a lot of fun and then I'd screwed it all up.

It wasn't that I hadn't enjoyed the kiss. The embarrassment had just taken precedence.

Now that I think about it, I realise it was the first time I've ever kissed someone who wasn't part of the family.

I struggle to get to sleep but when I do, I have a strange dream. I dream that I am standing with George in a field.

I smile widely, enjoying the sun raining down on us, warming me. I am happy.

And then he starts to change. His hair is darker, his freckles darkening. His limbs become less muscular. The boy that stands before me is slightly shorter but still a little bit taller than me. His face appears to be one that is friendly, obviously someone who enjoys smiling.

But his eyes are cold and he is frowning.

"Witch girl." he says and I feel my heart sink.

* * *

"Good morning, Silver."

"Bugger off, Weasel."

I am sitting in the Great Hall, munching on a roll in the shape of a flower. George Weasley sits across from me, a smile playing on his lips. It is early, only a handful of students already eating breakfast.

"Just wanted to wish you a good morning..." He feigns being hurt.

"Well, thanks but you shouldn't have bothered. We're not even friends...I think you're an idiot and that you should just leave me alone."

"You didn't seem to think so last night." he winks to me, realising he made things sound dirtier than they were.

"Yes, I did, I always think so. It was an accident, a mistake...the potion fumes had gotten to my head."

"You and I both know that's not true, you're quite clearly into me." He reaches over to the plate of bacon, scraping off a large portion for himself. I shake my head firmly.

"Oh come on! You can stop with the act, stop pretending you hate me!"

"Everything I'm saying to you is true, read my lips. I don't like you, I've never liked you. You're just a silly, scruffy little boy who needs a haircut and that no girl would look twice at," I glare firmly into his eyes, forcing myself to be cruel. "You mean nothing to me. You're deluding yourself."

He blinks a few times and let's everything sink in. Then he stands up, picks up a piece of bacon and stalks off.

Okay, that was a little harsh.

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**Thanks for reading and I promise I'll be back soon.**

**missiemill**

**xxx**


	8. Apology

I see George once or twice around the school in the next few weeks but he always seems to find a way to avoid me. Every time I see him I consider a way I can apologise but I can't think of any that I actually can see myself doing.

My opportunity comes when we are next in Transfiguration. McGonagall has decided her seating plan needs a shake up. Mostly she feels she has to move Ingrid to the front as she hasn't stopped talking. She moves Jaz to the back with me and shoves Ingrid between the twins.

George turns very pointedly to Ingrid and puts a hand on her arm. I struggle to understand why I am so jealous. I hardly know him. I'm not his friend. Why am I so jealous?

I can be a scheming when I want to be. Today is no exception.

"What are you doing?" asks Jaz as I scribble out a note on a piece of parchment and tcast pull out my wand.

"_Wingardium Leviosa._"

My note zooms past McGonagall before landing on George's desk. He picks it up and unfolds it. He turns to face me, mouthing confusedly at me.

"Detention Mr Weasley, Miss Silver."

At the end of class, George walks over to our desk, smiling ever so slightly. He puts down my note on the table and my messy writing, the ink still shiny because it's a little wet, is clearly visible.

_See you in detention._

* * *

_"_This is by far the worst punishment yet." George says surveying the empty greenhouse with disgust. Today we are to put a foul smelling fertiliser on some of Professor Sprout's more placid plants.

"I'm s..."

"What? I just said..."

"I'm sorry!" I say loudly. My voice bounces off of the greenhouse walls.

"Okay. Anyway, as I was saying, why aren't we just performing tasks for McGonagall?"

"What's your problem? Why won't you acknowledge my apology?" I breathe out loudly in exasperation.

He coughs awkwardly.

"I've accepted it. Can't we just serve our time now?"

I realise he's been avoiding eye contact for the whole conversation. Try as he might, he can't force himself to meet my gaze.

"What's your problem?" I repeat, slightly quieter this time. I catch sight of my reflection in the greenhouse window. Dark, hard eyes. Hair tangled, wild from walking in the wind. Scowling, tight jaw and very, very pale. I look ill, purplish blobs under my eyes. I also look like I couldn't give about anything, which is important.

"My problem? My problem is that I really can't be bothered smelling like shit for the rest of the day." he says. I smile wearily. Not the best joke but it does it's job, eases the tension. I walk towards the first pot, roll up my sleeves and get stuck in.

* * *

_"Why are they so mean to you?" _

_Cassie considers this, hugging her knees to her chest. Max takes a more relaxed position, lying on his belly over the carpet. The room is large, well lit and comfortable. The carpet is fluffy, deep red and comforting. Max's fingers draw circles in the material._

_"Because I let them." Cassie's forehead wrinkles a little, a deep crease forming in the centre._

_"Why do you let them?" _

_Cassie blinks a few times before a smile breaks out across her face._

_"You want to play snakes and ladders?" _

_Max's naïve brain does not process the hasty change of subject. He merely smiles back and exclaims,"Sure!"._

* * *

**Thanks for reading! Sorry not much happened, I promise it will pick up.**

**missiemill**

**xxx**


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